Chairman of the Board of the National Bank of Belarus Raman Halouchanka commented on the weakening of the Belarusian ruble against the dollar and explained the reasons behind it.
The decline of the Belarusian ruble is linked to its peg to the Russian ruble, but the situation remains calm, Halouchanka said.
“The situation is absolutely calm. Exchange rate movements remain within our corridors. If you mean the recent slight weakening of the Belarusian ruble against the dollar, it is primarily related to the weakening of the Russian ruble against the dollar. Given that our exchange rate is determined according to a formula that takes into account our currency basket, we have accordingly weakened somewhat against the U.S. currency as well. But again, this is all within our exchange rate corridors,” Halouchanka said.
He noted that foreign currency sales by individuals and legal entities are supporting the Belarusian ruble exchange rate.
“Looking retrospectively, during this month the population and, to a greater extent, legal entities usually acted as buyers of foreign currency. But now both individuals and legal entities are selling foreign currency, which also provides some support for the Belarusian ruble exchange rate. Therefore, everything is calm, everything is stable,” Halouchanka said in a comment to First Information Channel.
The Belarusian ruble has been falling against the dollar and euro since late July. On August 17, the exchange rate exceeded 3 rubles per dollar for the first time since March this year.